Gang shoots and kills Nyeri businessman, burns his car

A 40-year-old businessman has been brutally murdered in his home in Kiambogo Village in Kieni Constituency, Nyeri County as his wife and children watched.

Mr Godffrey Muriithi was shot in the stomach by armed robbers who raided his home and set ablaze his vehicle and a motorcycle.

His wife was also shot in the hand and is being treated at Consolata Hospital Mathari where the couple was rushed after the attack.

However, Mr Muriithi died while receiving treatment.

Confirming the incident Kieni West OCPD Ahmed Ali said they had launched investigations to establish the motive behind the murder while at the same time pursuing the killers.

“We visited the scene and launched investigations. For now, it is clear that we are not dealing with robbery but murder,” he said.

DISTRESS CALL

According to neighbours, the victim was shot outside his house as he responded to a distress call from his children.

“His children informed him that his vehicle was burning and that was when he met face to face with the killers. They left him lying in a pool of blood (after shooting him),” said the head of Nyumba Kumi in the area, Wilson Macharia.

The robbers then shot in the air as they escaped from the scene on foot, causing fear among residents.

“They were not using any car and when they noticed that people were responding they shot in the air causing panic. We could not trace them on foot,” Mr Macharia said.

It took the police nearly one hour to reach the remote village which is adjacent to the Aberdare National Park.

Residents complained that the incident occurred less than 100 metres from a police post.

Mr Joseph Kagotho said that the area is associated with poaching owing to its proximity to the forest and residents often collect bullets.

“We want the government to intervene because we neighbour the forest where people engage in criminal activities,” he said.

DEPLOY POLICE

The residents accused the national government of failing to deploy officers to the police post, noting that if there was police presence the attackers would not have struck.

The said last week a farmer was forced to part with Sh200,000 after he was attacked by armed robbers in broad daylight.

The construction of the police post and a dispensary was funded by the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF).

However, both facilities remain idle and unoccupied despite the residents having to grapple with rising insecurity and lack of medical services.

Normally, attack victims are taken to Consolata Mathari Hospital which is over 60 kilometres away.

Mr Kagicho called on the Nyeri County government to equip the dispensary and deploy health workers there.